Our team animated the race in the final 40 kilometers, when David De La Cruz and Enric Mas went to the attack.
Murgil Tontorra, the last of the day's eight classified climbs, played again a crucial role in the outcome of Clasica San Sebastian, but long before the peloton reached the foot of the 1900m-long hill which averaged 10.2% the race came to life, thanks to a witty move of Quick-Step Floors, who forced a selection after the pack crested Jaizkibel for the second time.
Quick-Step Floors' David De La Cruz and Enric Mas were part of that 15-man group who went clear before the second passage of Arkale (2.7km, 6.4%), the penultimate ascent of the race. The talented neo-pro soon took the front and drove the group on the tough gradients of the climb, his relentless and selfless effort helping the attackers establish a lead of half a minute.
The heavy amount of work laid down by the 23-year-old Spaniard over the hilly terrain of the Basque Country was even more impressive considering he was the only one pulling in that group from which Gianni Moscon (Team Sky) attacked under the 25km-to-go banner. The Italian managed to stay at the front until the last kilometer of Murgil Tontorra, where the pre-race favourites flew past him as they powered ahead from the peloton.
A group of five riders fought for victory in the city center, which was nabbed by Michal Kwiatkowski (Team Sky), who outsprinted Tony Gallopin (Lotto-Soudal) and Bauke Mollema (Trek-Segafredo). Best Quick-Step Floors rider in the race at the end of which our team retained the top spot in the World Tour classification for the 19th consecutive week was Czech Champion Zdenek Stybar.
Photo credit: ©Tim De Waele
